~The following text is an article on Marian devotion which was written by Fr. Jonas Shell who is a Roman Catholic priest of the Diocese of Steubenville. The article was first published in The Steubenville Register in the summer of 2022, and is used with the permission of the author. ~SCF What could be more Catholic than devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary? We pray the rosary, honor statues of Mary, sing songs about Mary, celebrate many Masses in her honor, and dedicate churches, towns, dioceses and nations under her name. She embodies Mother Church, as Mary exists to form Jesus Christ in the hearts of believers and draw lost souls to the love of her Son. She is our great hope insofar as the great gifts which God has poured out upon Mary and her response to those gifts give all of us hope that we too can respond to God with such generosity. She is the model of humility and obedience to God’s word. She is the model of one who ponders the things of God. She is…
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October: The Month of the Holy Rosary
“If it is possible for you, never neglect to say your beads every day, and if you find time, even the whole fifteen decades. Be not afraid of distractions, provided you are willing to struggle against them. Our heavenly Mother understands so well our weakness, our tired feelings, our weariness at times. Hail Mary’s multiplied never displease her. She appreciates your murmurings of faith, hope, and love. Do your best. But, never give up your beads. To carry them on your person . . . is that not as if you were saying them all day, all night secretly? Keep them, at times, especially in time of trial, in the hollow of your hand. That is to clasp Mary’s hand. To conclude, keep this in mind, at least: do not neglect to say three Hail Mary’s morning and night to Mary, Mother of God and your Mother, to thank the Most Blessed Trinity for having given us her. We can report marvelous results from faithfulness to that practice, among those who suffer, who labor, who undergo pain of any kind, in body, in soul, in the midst of cares, to safeguard their…
The Holy Name of Mary in September
As September progresses, and the leaves are beginning to turn to yellow, the Roman Catholic Church commemorates the Most Holy Name of Mary. The Church’s liturgy for today is a veritable feast which delights in the contemplation of this holy name as seen here. Dom Prosper Gueranger (b. 1805- d. 1875) in his book The Liturgical Year had much to say about this day; and it is worth a read. Here is Dom Prosper’s writing on the Most Holy Name of Mary: “And the Virgin’s name was Mary” (Luke i. 27). Let us speak a little about this name which signifies star of the sea, and which so well befits the Virgin Mother. Rightly is she likened to a star: for as a star emits its ray without being dimmed so the Virgin brought forth her Son without receiving any injury. The ray takes nought from the brightness of the star, nor the Son from His Mother’s integrity. This is the noble star risen out of Jacob, whose ray illumines the whole world, whose splendour shines in the heavens, penetrates…
The Birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary
~September the eighth is the birthday of the Blessed Virgin Mary, our life, our sweetness, and our hope. The world was changed at the birth of Our Lady as described by Dom Prosper Gueranger in the following (refreshed for today) 2018 Marian Room post (for further reading, you might open the blue-linked items in the post): Today is the celebration of the Nativity of Mary. It is a joyous day in the Roman Catholic Church, and in the world. If we tried to imagine a creature given to us as the Mother of Our Savior, I do not expect that we could have imagined one as good and kind, sweet and loving, perfect in every manner, as the Most Holy Mother, Mary; the Immaculate Conception, our Mother and Queen. On her birthday, we particularly remember Mary in her babyhood. Mary has been known traditionally in her babyhood under the title of Maria Bambina. Catholics have had a great love for Our Lady in her babyhood for centuries. In Dom Prosper Gueranger’s The Liturgical Year, Dom Gueranger treats of the Nativity of Mary in the following: “Let us celebrate…
Happy Marymass
“Mary’s life on Earth drew to a close. Her eyes were fixed on Heaven. Her heart beat with affection for God; her face shone and a smile was ever on her lips. All at once her heart gave a start, and Mary flew to Heaven, to the embrace of her beloved.” ~Rev. James Alberione, S.S.P., from The Life of The Madonna in Art It is the feast of the Assumption of Mary, and so we say: we wish you all a blessed and happy Marymass! ~From all of us at The Marian Room ~Top image: The Assumption of Mary ~More on the customs and traditions of Marymass: here.